


Something to Be Thankful For

by geri_chan



Category: Pet Shop of Horrors
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-13
Updated: 2014-12-13
Packaged: 2018-03-01 06:07:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2762495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/geri_chan/pseuds/geri_chan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thanksgiving dinner at the petshop.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Something to Be Thankful For

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on [LJ](http://geri-chan.livejournal.com/200074.html)/[IJ](http://geri-chan.insanejournal.com/189019.html).

"No," D said firmly  
  
"Ah, come on, D," Leon wheedled. "It'll be fun."  
  
"Why on earth should I let you hold a Thanksgiving party in my shop?"  
  
"It's not like it's gonna be a huge bash," Leon said defensively. "Just you and me and Chris and Jill. She's not able to go home for Thanksgiving this year, so I thought it would be nice if she didn't have to spend the holidays alone. I thought you liked Jill."  
  
"Detective Jill is a charming woman and pleasant company," D conceded. "However, I do not see why you cannot hold this Thanksgiving dinner at your apartment."  
  
"Jill thinks my place is a dump," Leon replied.  
  
D dropped his stern expression long enough to smirk for a moment. "And she would be correct. But still I fail to see why I must host your party."  
  
"Well, I--"  
  
"And," D interrupted, cutting off whatever excuse Leon was about to offer, "I fail to see why you would think I would even consider participating in a party in which a helpless creature is ruthlessly butchered and its flesh served up as sustenance for a gluttonous feast."  
  
"Gimme some credit," Leon retorted indignantly. "I was planning on a vegetarian meal--figured we could have one of those tofurkey things instead of the real deal," he explained, though he made a face at the thought. "And mashed potatoes and corn on the cob should be okay with you, right?"  
  
"I still do not--" D began to protest.  
  
"And maybe sweet potatoes with marshmallows?" Leon cajoled.  
  
"Well..." D wavered.  
  
Leon sensed weakness and moved in for the kill with, "And a pumpkin pie from Madame C's with lots of whipped cream."  
  
While D hesitated, Chris ran into the petshop waving a brown construction paper turkey with many bright tail feathers (also made of construction paper) glued haphazardly to it.  
  
 _Count, Leon!_ Chris "shouted" eagerly. _Look what I made in school today for Thanksgiving! Do you like my turkey?_  
  
He held up his turkey for them to admire, beaming proudly at his brother and the Count. D heaved a sigh, and Chris's smile faltered slightly.  
  
 _You don't like it?_ he asked, his lower lip quivering slightly.  
  
D glanced over at Leon, who shrugged and gave him a look that seemed to say, _Are you really gonna make my little brother cry?_  
  
D sighed again, then gently placed a hand on top of Chris's head and said, "It is a very fine looking turkey. Perhaps you can display him at the dinner table--as a guest, instead of a meal." He gave Leon a small, ironic smile. "I understand that we are having a party here tonight."  
  
 _Yay!_ Chris exclaimed, brightening instantly. _Thanks, Count, you're the best!_ He flung his arms around D in a quick hug, then ran off, saying, _I'm going to go show my turkey to Pon-chan and the others!_  
  
"Hey, what am I, chopped liver?" Leon called out after him, but Chris either didn't hear or didn't choose to respond. He turned to D, who had crossed his arms across his silk-clad chest and was glaring at him.  
  
"Thanks, D," Leon said in a conciliatory tone. "It really means a lot to the kid."  
  
D's expression softened slightly and he huffed, "Oh, very well! You may have your party here, but I want an apple pie as well as pumpkin. And ice cream!"  
  
"Your wish is my command," Leon said with a grin.  
  
"If that were really true, you wouldn't be loitering around my shop every day," D grumbled, but Leon just laughed and went out to pick up the promised pies.  
  


***

  
Later that night, Jill arrived for dinner (with the promised sweet potatoes and marshmallows) and admired Chris's turkey. And Leon had to admit that the tofu turkey substitute that D had prepared was almost as good as the real thing: rich and flavorful, and it even had a crispy, browned outer "skin". Leon wasn't sure how he had pulled it off, but it was delicious.  
  
When Jill complimented D on the tofurkey, he smiled modestly and said, "I can't really take the credit. I had a certain chef prepare it for me--he specializes in vegetarian dishes."  
  
"Oh?" Jill asked curiously. "Who is your chef?"  
  
"That's a secret," D replied, with one of his mysterious, inscrutable smiles. He reached over and patted Tet-chan, who was eyeing Leon as if he thought the detective might be more tasty than turkey-flavored tofu.  
  
Leon glared at him across the table and silently mouthed the words, _Don't even think about it, you little monster._ Tet-chan stared back at him a moment longer to prove that he wasn't intimidated, then sniffed disdainfully and turned his attention back to his plate of tofu and mashed potatoes.  
  
Despite his earlier protests, D seemed to be enjoying himself, and made small talk with Jill about a new bakery that had opened up in the neighborhood. It helped that Jill was unfazed by having to share a dining table with a bunch of animals, and even commented on how cute and charming Pon-chan was, which endeared endeared her to both the raccoon and to D.  
  
"By the way," Jill said as Leon was serving the pie and ice cream for dessert. "Did you hear about the turkey heist?"  
  
"The what?" Leon asked in confusion. "I took off work early today to prepare for tonight's dinner. Did someone steal a bunch of frozen turkeys from a supermarket or something?"  
  
"No, a truckload of live turkeys en route to be...er..." Jill hesitated, looking over at Chris, then amended her words to, "The truck was hijacked en route to deliver the turkeys. The driver escaped unharmed, but all the turkeys are missing. About fifty of them."  
  
"Where the hell does someone hide fifty live turkeys?" Leon wondered out loud.  
  
Just then, he heard a faint noise coming from the back chambers of the shop that sounded suspiciously like "gobble gobble".  
  
Leon and Jill looked at each other, while D coughed and cleared his throat. "Did you hear something?" Leon asked Jill.  
  
She hesitated again before replying, "I'm sure it was nothing. There are a lot of animals in this shop, after all."  
  
"Yes," D jumped in, eagerly grabbing at the excuse. "The animals can get noisy from time to time." The pets gathered in the dining room hastily began barking, mewing, chirping, or making other typical animal noises appropriate to their species.  
  
D smiled nervously as Leon gazed at him intently, weighing the satisfaction of arresting the Count versus the burden of doing paperwork on a holiday, not to mention ruining the party and making his little brother cry.  
  
"I guess it was nothing," Leon said finally, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. "This place always sounds like a zoo, anyway. So who wants some pie?"  
  
 _Me!_ Chris declared, waving his hand in the air for emphasis. _Pumpkin, please, with ice cream._  
  
"I'll have apple," Jill said. "With maybe just a teeny scoop of ice cream."  
  
Leon didn't bother asking D what he wanted, and just served him a generous slice of both pumpkin and apple, plus a heaping scoop of gourmet vanilla bean ice cream. "Happy Thanksgiving, D," he said, with a hint of warning in his voice that said, _You had better be grateful for this._  
  
D smiled back at him with what seemed like sincere gratitude and said, "Happy Thanksgiving, my dear detective."


End file.
